Monday, July 22, 2013

Alex Len Undergoes Another Ankle Surgery

When he was drafted by the Phoenix Suns, everyone knew that Alex Len (2011-13) was recovering from surgery to repair stress fractures in his left ankle. But now, Len has also had surgery on his right ankle too.

Despite the pair of surgeries, it's expected that Len will be ready for the beginning of the 2013-14 season. The timetable for his initial injury was set at four to six months, and this procedure isn't expected to significantly alter that projection.

While some may express concern that Len needs so much work done before even stepping on an NBA court, it's worth remembering the Suns have arguably the best medical staff in the league. If any team deserves the benefit of the doubt with player injuries, it's Phoenix. So it'll be interesting to see how Len recovers in the coming months.

When a 20-year-old, 7-foot-1 man has surgeries on both ankles within a little more than two months, the sofa and armchair doctors throw their ankles off their ottomans in disbelief.

Did the Phoenix Suns draft damaged goods at No. 5 last month by choosing Alex Len? Is this another big man with chronic health issues barely above the hardwood? [...]

There certainly is reason for concern, because Len is a critical element to the Suns' turnaround. But the ankle issues do not alarm the Suns. They checked out the left ankle before drafting him and were confident that the partial stress fracture would not be a future issue.

But Len himself assured his fans on Twitter that he'll be back in around 4 weeks:

.@KayGee19 I should be on the court in about 4 weeks. I'll be fully ready for camp! #AskAlex